Wednesday, April 20, 2016

Maybe someday the world will be ready for a wry but gentle
musical about Islam, but for now we’ll have to settle for loving parodies of
the foibles of Catholics, Protestants, and Jews. Broadway Rose’s current
production of The Church Basement Ladies
is a classic example of the genre – warm, nostalgic, cheerful, and utterly
harmless. What it lacks in substance it makes up for in unabashed enthusiasm
(expressed through the actors, musical direction, and set) for a time, place,
and people who define our image of both the strength and kitschiness of
traditional American religion (in this case, Garrison Keillor’s much-loved Minnesota
Lutherans).

The show is set entirely in the basement kitchen of a 1960s
era rural Lutheran church, and cast only with the pastor and four women who
prepare the food for church special events and slowly learn to deal with large
and small changes on the horizon as the decade unfolds. Whether it’s changing
the color of the hymnals (just plain wrong), the pastor’s young new wife who
offers vegetarian lasagna for a church dinner (gasp!), or the teen daughter who
may be dating a Catholic (oh, the horror!) the basement ladies bear up bravely,
if not silently, under the assaults on their sacred ways. Pastor Gunderson,
Mavis, Vivian, Karin, and Karin’s daughter Signe sing and dance their way
through Christmas dinner, a funeral, a Hawaiian-themed Easter fundraiser, and
finally Signe’s wedding (thankfully, to Handsome Harry, not to the Catholic
boy).

While the show is amusing, and evokes a nice warm glow of
nostalgia (probably stronger for Lutherans), the songs are not terribly
memorable and it’s thematically thin. However, none of this matters – it’s
Broadway Rose, and the quality of the performances ensures that the audience is
treated to a spectacular two-hour concert by five wonderful vocalists. The
solos sparkle, but it’s the harmonies that make the evening – mostly smooth and
rich, but with occasional flights of spine-tingling inventiveness.

Matthew Belles (Pastor Gunderson) is a solid singer and
actor, but mostly takes a back seat to the ladies. However, the emotional (by
Lutheran standards) scene where he writes a eulogy for the beloved Willie the
handyman provides one of the show’s most touching moments. Lori Paschall
(Vivian), Debbie Hunter (Karin), and Zoe Randol (Signe) bring bite and warmth
to their intergenerational tension. Paschall plays the crusty and seemingly
immovable traditionalist to the hilt in her paranoid “The Cities,” but like
Belles she gets a real moment in the scene where Vivian comforts Signe, the
terrified bride to be. Paschall’s role as the aging, self-appointed doyenne of the
synod might have been clearer if she had worn a white wig – it was not immediately
obvious that she was supposed to be much older than the other women. Debbie
Hunter (Karin) displays a nice combination of subservience and spunk as she
wrestles with Paschall for a voice in the management of the kitchen, and it is
Hunter’s voice that really sells some of the otherwise forgettable songs. Zoe
Randol (Signe) has inherited her “mother’s” backbone – she is calm but firm as
she stands up for her bold decisions to associate with a Catholic, go to
college in the sin-rife Twin Cities, and listen to the Beatles. Her ultimate marriage to a nice local
(Lutheran) boy is a bit of a disappointment for the rebel in me, but she offers
some stunning harmonies and displays the best dance moves in the cast, so I
forgive her for that one lapse.

I first saw Kymberli Colbourne a few months ago playing
Captain Ahab in Moby Dick, Rehearsed.
Nothing in that impressive performance prepared me for Mavis – the ultimate
farmwife with a sunny disposition, ready to tackle any challenge without
complaint. Colbourne’s fine-tuned and fearless grasp of physical comedy makes
her hot-flashes (first seen in the truly funny “My Own Personal Island”) a
motif as powerful and oft repeated as the great Lutheran cliché, “This is most
certainly true.” Whether she’s opening a stuck door, cooling herself in the
freezer, or clambering to open a window in sub-zero temperatures Colbourne puts
it all out there, and it works.

The sixth “cast” member is the set itself – a detailed,
fully equipped room with great props, it captures every detail of a church
kitchen. In this show, butter holds a
place of singular honor, each apron carries its own subtle message, and the
knives, pans, tables and appliances almost come to life as they interact with
the human cast (especially the dancing butter rolls).

Last, but not least, music director/keyboard player Jeffrey
Childs is the unseen hero of the show.
He has molded a talented cast into a finely tuned and sometimes exciting
vocal ensemble, and the music from his single keyboard is so full that my
companion had to point out to me that he was working alone.

“Church Basement
Ladies” is playing at the Broadway Rose New Stage Theater, 12850 SW Grant
Avenue, Tigard through Sunday, May 15th with performances at 7:30 pm on
Thursday, Friday and Saturday and 2:00 pm matinees on Saturday and Sunday. An
additional performance will be held at 7:30 pm on Wednesday, May 11.

Monday, April 18, 2016

Anton Chekhov is inarguably one of the key figures of 19th
century realism in theater, and it is a bit of an understatement to say that
his worldview was not perky. Although told it was dark comedy, I was expecting
something pretty gloomy when I walked into Theatre in the Grove for the opening
night production of playwright Christopher Durang’s Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike and saw a stunningly detailed
set reminiscent of the home in TITG’s 2014 production August in Osage County (also not exactly a theatrical funfest). I walked out a few hours later with my fears
assuaged, thoroughly entertained and utterly charmed. Director Zachary Centers
and his cast do a fine job of capturing the often-gentle humor of Durang’s
Chekhovian send-up, and show surprising restraint even when dealing with the
broader comedic elements of the play.

The story centers on three siblings, all named after Chekhov
characters by their theater-loving parents; in middle age, the three are still doing
a great job of embodying the despair and ennui of their namesakes. Vanya and
Sonia live completely unproductive lives in their childhood home, which is
owned by jet-setting sister Masha, an international screen star (courtesy of her
roles in the “Sexy Killer” film franchise).
Masha arrives at the homestead with her new boy toy Spike, intent on
selling the property (thus leaving her siblings with no home in which to park
their empty existence). A constant sense of impending doom is reinforced by the
hysterical ravings of Cassandra, the cleaning lady/local prophetess. While most
of Cassandra’s dire predictions are literally fulfilled, disaster is averted as
the key characters find their authentic voices along with the courage to deal
with the setbacks. Oh, and it’s really,
really funny.

Aaron Morrow (Vanya) is a newcomer to TITG, but will be
familiar to many from performances all over Washington County and beyond in
other community theater productions – frequently as a goofball, a drunk, or a
drunken goofball. Morrow and director Centers have worked together to create a
very different actor – witty, wry, and controlled in a huge role. Even his
funniest moments, like the rant about change and his overt lusting after the
hunky Spike, are played with careful timing that project both Vanya’s
intelligence and Morrow’s. As Sonia, Pruella Centers is neurotic, insecure, and
wonderfully mercurial – she shifts fluidly from raging angst to self-pity to
almost catatonic calm, and neither the audience nor Vanya knows which Sonia will
emerge next. Jodi Coffman plays Masha as the consummate actress who no longer
seems to have a character of her own – she is every insecure, vain,
self-absorbed and dissatisfied screen queen ever imagined – and Coffman plays
it to the hilt.

Andy Roberts has a great deal of fun as boy toy Spike – his
reverse strip tease is flamboyantly athletic and carefully costumed for maximum
effect. Wendy Harris Bax doesn’t just
play the role of Cassandra, she attacks it, and her scene with the voodoo doll
is beyond hilarious. The final character, Nina (Rachel May) is a young,
beautiful aspiring actress who radiates naivety from every pore. May is sweetly
innocent as an ingénue, but it is her performance as a molecule (simulating a hedgehog,
a porpoise, a spider, and a host of other creatures) that allows her to display
a remarkable talent for physical comedy.

Theatre in the Grove strikes a fine balance between
traditional community theater fare and the truly unexpected; Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike
definitely falls into the latter category. The range of humor and cultural
references is broad and layered, so familiarity with Chekhov, while helpful, is
by no means prerequisite to enjoying the play.
Parental discretion is advised, as there are mature themes and language.

Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike plays at Theatre in the Grove, 2028 Pacific Avenue,
Forest Grove through May 1 with performances at 7:30 pm on Fridays and
Saturdays and matinees at 2:30 pm on Sundays.

Tuesday, April 12, 2016

Beaverton Civic Theatre is reaching out to a whole new
demographic with their latest production, Mo Willems’ Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical. Since the Knuffle Bunny books emerged well after my active parenting days, I
rounded up an eight-year-old neighbor to accompany me to the show and to share
some age-appropriate insight. She is a smart, well-behaved kid and definitely
great company for this adventure – but sadly, she doesn’t seem to have the
makings of a theater critic. When I asked her after the show what she thought
were the best things and what things could have been better, she happily
informed me that she loved everything! When pressed, she did confess that it
would have been nice if the part of Trixie (the central character) had been
played by someone much younger – but since it’s a huge role and Trixie is
supposed to be about 18 months old, we agreed that no actual baby could have
handled the job!

For those of you new to the world of Knuffle Bunny, here’s the skinny: Dad and Mom are parents to
Trixie, a stunningly lively toddler who has an extensive and colorful baby talk
vocabulary, but hasn’t quite mastered expression in English. She adores Knuffle
Bunny, her stuffed toy, and is desolate when separated from the rabbit. Dad
(inept, as dads often are in children’s stories) resolves to take Trixie to the
laundromat, and give Mom a few hours of peace and quiet. While at the laundromat,
Knuffle Bunny is accidentally put in with the dirty clothes; when Trixie
discovers that her toy is missing she is inconsolable, incessantly screaming
“Aggle Flaggle Klabble” but unable to explain to Dad what is upsetting her.
Mom, of course, saves the day. When the traumatized dad/daughter get home, Mom
immediately sees the problem and asks (repeatedly) “Where is Knuffle Bunny?”
Once Dad calms down enough to actually hear the question, he knows at once!
They rush back to the laundromat, Dad bravely throws himself into the washer
and after a Herculean struggle with panties, bras, socks, etc. he emerges from
battle victoriously clutching the errant bunny. Overjoyed, Trixie yells
“Knuffle Bunny” – her first actual words!

Richard Cohn-Lee (“Dad”) struck me at first as ridiculously
over-the-top. However, a few minutes in it struck me: he is not just playing a
role, he’s playing it in the exaggerated style a parent uses to bring life to a
funny story when reading to a young child. The reaction of the kids in the
audience makes it clear that he is hitting exactly the right note. In response
to his panicked “where did Trixie go?” a little girl in front of me pointed
stage right and cried out “that way!” When he chases after Trixie in the
aisles, kids all around the theater crane their necks to catch every slapstick
moment. He is particularly funny when he
envisions himself as a rock star, playing air guitar like Pete Townsend on
steroids, but he manages to rein it in and express genuine emotion in the
touching “Really, Really Love You.”

Kayla Hughes (“Mom”) is the show’s straight man, and she
does a fine job of portraying the long-suffering, exhausted, but
super-competent parent. She has a lovely voice that is occasionally drowned out
by the music track – something that can be easily fixed with a little
modulation in the sound booth.

The real star (other than the bunny, of course) is Michaela
Warren as “Trixie.” This is an amazingly demanding role for a young girl, and
she simply nails it – I expect to see her time and again in local theater
productions! A sparkling moment in her performance is the poignant “Aggle
Flaggle Klabble,” a song composed entirely of nonsense syllables that
nonetheless expresses her complete despair at having lost her beloved Knuffle
Bunny. I am in awe of her ability to learn the hundreds of lines, when only the
final moments of the show allow her to speak English!

As is appropriate for a children’s storybook, the set is
minimal. A few large cubes double as planters and washing machines (Cohn-Lee’s
foes in the heart-pounding rescue scene and props for the hysterical antics and
vocals of the laundromat chorus).

Director Melissa Riley and Music Director Beth Noelle are
bringing something new and wonderful to Beaverton Civic’s repertoire – theater
appropriate and captivating for even the youngest audiences. The
family-friendly nature of the show is enhanced by the $5.00 ticket price, and
the single act runs less than an hour, so kiddos with short attention spans
don’t have time to get restless (or need to use the bathroom!). This is a “can’t miss” show for parents or grandparents of
young children, and with only a two-week run tickets are selling fast!

Beaverton Civic Theatre’s production of Knuffle Bunny: A Cautionary Musical has three performances on
Saturday, April 16th with shows at 11:00 am, 1:00 pm, and 3:00 pm at
the Beaverton City Library Auditorium.

Tuesday, April 5, 2016

Jonathan Tolins’ hard-hitting tragicomedy, Twilight of the Golds, opened in 1993 –
the same year that Seinfeld fans made
the phrase “not that there’s anything wrong with that” a cultural icon. These
are not unrelated phenomena, as the play explicitly revolves around a Jewish
family in New York dealing with issues of tolerance and homosexuality. However,
the play’s slightly futuristic and sci-fi flavor allows (actually, requires)
the audience to view both gayness and genetic research as metaphors for a much
broader set of ethical and moral questions. Twilight Theater Company director
Ronald Jorgensen and his mighty five-person cast present a carefully paced show
that fluctuates between stereotypical (but terribly funny) humor and gut-wrenching
emotional expression.

Suzanne Gold-Stein and husband Rob Stein are celebrating
their third anniversary with her very close, very loving family – parents Phyllis
and Walter and her obviously gay, but only occasionally campy brother David.
Suzanne waits until the family is together to announce that she is pregnant.
Genetic researcher Rob reveals that his employer may be willing to do an
experimental amniocentesis and DNA analysis of the fetus, just to make sure
nothing is wrong. Here’s where the sci-fi aspect emerges, as the test results
come in: the baby is fine, but is 90% likely to be “like David” (i.e., gay).
The story then revolves around the family’s reaction, and in particular the
possibility that Suzanne might choose to abort the baby. How does a relatively
liberal Jewish family with a much-loved gay son/brother feel about this,
particularly in 1993, the year that U.S. AIDS diagnoses peaked? How do they
reconcile an intuitive aversion to eugenics, especially powerful in any post-WW
II Jewish family, with a woman’s right to choose?

Given that issues of nature vs. nurture and genetics
research even in 2016 render the 90% “like David” diagnosis utterly implausible,
one can (but should not) dismiss the plot as naïve and irrelevant. It’s not a huge
stretch, after all, to expand the conversation to include transgender identity,
autism, and other “defects” that are not necessarily predictive of extreme suffering
or devastating illness. Leaving legal
issues out of the equation, what are the moral implications of terminating a
pregnancy, not because the family or woman is unable or unwilling to raise a
baby but because they don’t want to raise this
baby? Can we assume that a gay, or black, or transgender, or autistic, or even
female adult is by definition disadvantaged and would be better off with the
more culturally powerful status of straight, white, “normal” male?

For the story to work, we need to believe that the Golds are
inherently likeable, good-hearted people – people a lot like us. This is where Twilight of the Golds really sparkles.
Jodi Rafkin (Phyllis) creates a perfect Jewish mother – over-the-top warm,
intensely involved and lovingly manipulative toward both of her offspring. She
controls her accent and delivery so that the humor and pathos come through
without a hint of parody. Chandano Fuller (Walter) captures the contradictions
of his role – apparently self-centered, clearly used to being the alpha male,
but revealing his doting father side by secretly doling out cash to his kids
and by refusing to kvetch about their choices. Danyelle Tinker (Suzanne) and
Jason A. England (David) have great chemistry as the closely bonded sister and
brother who seem to be unquestionably accepting of the others’ faults – the
bitter poignancy of their ultimate disagreement is testimony to their
believability. The only character we don’t need to love is Rob, and William
Ferguson does a fine balancing act – part cold scientist, part emotional
outcast because he will never really penetrate the loving shell around the
nuclear Gold family.

With the IKEA-feel of the Gold-Stein apartment and a few
kitschy touches in the Gold’s dining room, JJ Abrams sketches the yuppie design
of the era. Robin Pair’s lighting design eliminates the need for scene changes
and keeps the action flowing, and his special effects (in combination with
Ilana Watson’s sound design) create brief but striking operatic
interludes. I was especially struck by
the subtly appropriate costumes – small touches like ‘90s appropriate
pantyhose, Phyllis’ bouffant hairdo, and that tiny Izod alligator helped me to
absorb the action from the perspective of the era.

Because of mature themes and language, Twilight of the Golds is not appropriate for younger audiences.
Beyond that, I would enthusiastically recommend that local audiences take
advantage of the opportunity to see this rarely produced, powerful, funny,
thought-provoking show.

Twilight Theater Company’s production of Twilight of the Golds is playing at the
Performing Arts Theater, 7515 N. Brandon Avenue, Portland through Saturday,
April 16th with performances at 8 P.M. Thursday, Friday and Saturday
and Sunday matinees at 3 P.M.